Unknown Location
Have you ever stood on the Moon? Have you ever breathed underwater? Have you ever swam through magma?
Have you ever stopped and asked yourself...
"Welcome to [The Gamer's Tutorial]!"
"Please Press 'A'!"
"Alright, where the hell is the 'A' button?"
If you have… you've either never played a console-based video game in your life… or you're higher than a rich hippie.
I don't know how and I don't know why, but I am now standing on top of a white platform in a black void with a disembodied voice telling me to "press a button" when I'm not even holding a game controller.
"Where are you?"
"How did you get there?"
"What's happening to you?"
"How will you get home?"
These are some of the questions that you are probably asking your computer/phone screens right now.
However, a slightly transparent blue screen just appeared in front of me with a large "A" right in the center of it.
"Ah, there it is."
And with that said, I pressed the button. There was a slight whirring sound all around me before the disembodied voice spoke again.
"Input recognized. System calibrated. Scan complete."
"Greetings, Elena Magdalena. You have been selected to be reincarnated into an alternate universe as a [Gamer]! The purpose for this reincarnation is because the difficulty level was mistakenly set unreasonably high for your previous life. In order to properly reimburse you for your troubles, you will now be given a chance to live a second life. Do you understand?"
+Yes
+No
I selected "yes" as I did indeed understand everything that was said. My old life wasn't exactly all that nice, so getting another chance like this is almost too good to be true.
"Great! Now, for the first part of the tutorial, say 'Status Menu'!"
"Status Menu." I repeated.
Instantly, a more opaque blue screen appeared. It was larger than the previous screen and it had a lot more detailed information on it than just one letter.
—Status Screen-
Name: Elena Magdalena
Gender: Female
Occupation: Gamer
Title: Numbnut Noob (+1 LUK)
LVL: 1
EXP: 0/30
HP: 50/50 (+1.1 HP/minute)
MP: 50/50 (+1.1 MP/minute)
STR: 1 (1+0+0)
END: 1 (1+0+0)
AGI: 1 (1+0+0)
INT: 1 (1+0+0)
MAG: 1 (1+0+0)
LUK: 2 (1+0+1)
Stat Points: 18
"This is your Status Screen! It lists any personal information, along with your level, HP, MP, and stats. Further information regarding your stats can be found in the Help Screen."
"Stat Points are points you gain every time you level up. You can spend these points to increase your base stats quickly. Do you want to assign Stat Points now?"
+Yes
+No
Oh… god… a "stat-based game"...
Ah well, I'll just try to get used to it. I'm gonna need to remember what all my friends used to do...
Seeing as I had no idea what I should be expecting, I clicked "no" for the time being. I could already understand my Status Screen fairly well, but I want to get a better understanding and game plan for where I spend my points.
"Okay, now let's move on to the Inventory! Say 'Inventory Screen'!"
"Inventory Screen."
And with that, the screen's color changed to a light green. Instead of giving any kind of information, the screen was filled with a bunch of empty gray boxes. There were a few tabs along the top that said "Items", "Clothing/Armor", "Weapons", and "Key Items".
"This is your Inventory! You can store anything and everything you own in this system! To store things, just insert the item into the screen! Additional information on the Inventory Screen will be provided in the next stage of the tutorial!"
"Now, onto the Skills/Magic Screen! Say 'Skills Screen' or 'Magic Screen'!"
"Skills Screen." I said, seeing the pattern with which the voice speaks. I liked how it only gave me the bare minimum of information about each screen whilst directing me to the in-game Help Screen for anything else.
If it keeps up like this, I probably would be well enough off in whatever world I end up in if I just started playing instead of sitting down and reading through the Help Screen. The bare minimum IS enough in order to play the game, after all.
After speaking the command, the screen turned to an orangeish-red color. There were two large tabs on top of the screen now. One said "Skills" and the other said "Magic". The Skills Screen was set up to house something like a "skill list". I could tell, because I already had a few.
… Don't ask me, ask them. Like I am.
"Uh… I already have skills?" I asked out loud, thinking the voice would answer me.
"This is the Skills Screen! This is where you can view any skills that you have acquired! Being reincarnated as a [Gamer], you have started off with four very important skills! Check them out by tapping on them!"
"Okay, it feels like you're ignoring my question. Ah well, see if I care… cuz' I don't." I responded, trying to sound annoyed as I started tapping on each skill listed. Each one came up with a smaller screen with more detailed information about each skill.
—Skills-
+[Gamer's Body] – LVL: MAX – Passive
—Grants the player a body that is built like a game character's. This body's capabilities are determined by the player's stats. If the player learns an ability that requires an alteration to the body in order to perform, this body can do so without limitation nor risk of permanent damage. With this body, if your HP drops to zero, then you "die". However, if your HP is not at zero, then you can heal from any wound given enough time. Grants the player immunity to cancer, physical illness, scarring, extreme blood loss and physical fatigue.
+[Gamer's Mind] – LVL: MAX – Passive
—Grants the player's mind protection from most ailments that would harm the player's ability to play the game. Allows for calm thinking in even the most dire of situations, though it will not help with general confusion or uncertainty. Grants the player immunity to induced sleep, mental fatigue, mind control/reading, mental illness, and debilitating fear.
+[Language] – LVL: MAX – Passive
—Allows the player to understand any modern written or spoken language without difficulty. The player's preferred language/subtitles can be changed in the "Options Screen".
+[Fiction Adaptation] – LVL: MAX – Passive
—Allows the player to learn and use any ability, regardless of logic. In order to learn a new ability, the player must purchase it from the "Skill Store" or the "Magic Store". Any ability may be manually used, but the player won't gain it as a "Skill" or "Magic", thus forcing the player to only be able to use it manually until the ability is bought.
"Now, if you tap on the "Magic" tab, you can open the Magic Screen! Try it out!"
The voice brought me out of reading through the last part of [Fiction Adaptation], which I thought was awesome! Now it didn't even matter where I ended up! I could just learn every ability I've ever dreamed of having!
Obeying the voice, I tapped my finger on the tab that said "Magic". Instantly, the screen transitioned with a small whooshing sound into a purple screen. This screen had two major windows. One had the space for a "skill list" while the other had a generic looking "skill tree" set-up. I guess it might mean that different skills might be categorized and treated differently in terms of leveling.
"This is the Magic Screen! Only abilities that use MP are listed on the Magic Screen! Any ability that doesn't rely on MP will be listed on the Skill Screen! You already have one known spell, so go ahead and check it out!"
I see that I only have one known spell, so I tapped on it to bring up an informational screen detailing its effect.
—Magic-
+[Observe] – LVL: 1 – EXP: 0/100% - Active – MP Cost: 5 MP
—Use the basic ability of a [Gamer] to examine objects or people in order to learn more about them! For people, the level of [Observe] must be equal to or higher than their level in order to discern anything about them! For objects, the more mysterious or important an object is, the higher level [Observe] must be to learn anything!
"This concludes the basic tutorial for the Gamer Menu! Alternatively, by saying the command 'Gamer Menu', you can bring up the main menu of the system! Some players have said that navigating through the Gamer Menu makes it feel more like a game! Also, it is suggested that you open the Help Screen whenever you don't understand something about the system!"
"And with that, we conclude the first half of [The Gamer's Tutorial]! Now, we shall move on to the second part of [The Gamer's Tutorial]! The Combat Tutorial!"
Oh… okay then.
A moment after the voice said that I had finished her little declaration, the white platform that I had been standing on started to shine with an incredibly powerful radiance. So much so that I was forced to close and cover my eyes with my arms.